Culminating
Events:
Culminating event for the degree program
Dissertation
Dissertation Advising Committee Information
A three person committee comprised of three graduate faculty members, some of whom may be from outside the department, form the Dissertation Advising Committee.
Dissertation Examining Committee Information
The original three person Dissertation Advising Committee, plus two additional readers, one of whom must be from outside the department, form the Dissertation Examining Committee.
Advisor/Committee Information
A written report must be sent to the Graduate Coordinator indicating the change that has been arranged. The Graduate Coordinator assists in this process if needed. Approval is given by the Graduate Coordinator.
Preliminary Exam Description
Students complete questions in a major area, minor area, statistics, and research methodology. Each of these areas is the subject of a 2-3 hour block of questions.
Subject Areas/Major Components of the Preliminary Examination
Students complete questions in a major area, minor area, statistics, and research methodology. Each of these areas is the subject of a 2-3 hour block of questions.
At what point in the program is the student expected to take the preliminary examination
The exams are taken at the end of their coursework in the doctoral program.
Writing the Questions for the Preliminary Examination
Faculty members write the questions, depending on the student's area(s) of concentration.
Evaluating the Preliminary Examination
Evaluation of the exams is pass/fail, graded by the faculty who wrote the preliminary examination questions.
Criterion for Passing the Preliminary Examination.
The written exam and oral follow-up must be satisfactorily completed. Once the written exam is completed, students meet with the faculty members who wrote the exam questions for an oral follow-up.
Administering, Scheduling, and Proctoring the Preliminary Examination
The exam is scheduled at the mutual convenience of the student and faculty, and is proctored by the faculty. Students complete the exam in two days, one week apart.
Dissertation/Monograph Philosophy
The dissertation represents a research study that provides a substantive contribution to the literature. As such, it is a rigorous examination of a research problem that requires extensive investigation, using quantitative and/or qualitative methodology.
Philosophy of the Proposal
The dissertation proposal encompasses the first part of the dissertation: introduction, review of literature, and methodology. It is a substantive document that spells out clearly the rationale for the research, reviews the literature, and precisely identifies the methodology to be used in answering the research problem. The proposal is reviewed and approved by the Dissertation Advising Committee.
Criterion for Passing the Dissertation and the Defense.
Overall evaluation of pass/fail with recommendations for improvements of the dissertation as a result of faculty (Dissertation Examining Committee) review and discussion at the dissertation defense.
Dissertation Defense Scheduling
The defense is scheduled at the mutual convenience of the student and the members of the Dissertation Examining Committee.
Announcing the Dissertation Defense
Notice is provided to the Office of Student Services of the College of Education, which completes the necessary paperwork to announce the defense date, time, and location.
